River of Time
by Lady Falcon Champion of Horus
Summary: Based on WSJ's one-shot. Is there life after hikaris? Yami and Bakura are about to find out. Immortally teenagers, can they cope living together without their lights? (Darkshipping)
1. Yami no Bakura: Death

River of Time 

by Lady Falcon 

**Notes:** Based off Wingleader Sora Jade's one-shot of the same name. And yes, I have her permission to write this. :D She doesn't like yaoi, but since I'm her cousin she decided to indulge me. ^^ This isn't exactly yaoi anyway, mostly just fluffy shonen-ai. And humor. There are _far_ too many angsty Darkshipping fics, in my opinion. :p This one is angsty at times (especially near the beginning), but is mostly humor. 

The chapters alternate between Yami no Bakura (Bakura) and Yami no Yuugi (Yami) POV during part 1. Part 2 is completely third person POV, and that's where the real humor begins to come in. ^_^ 

**Summery:** The year is 2075. Almost 80 years have passed since Battle City. The hikaris are dead, but somehow Yami and Bakura are still alive, and always eighteen. After Yugi's and Ryou's deaths, they go their separate ways to grieve. But they need each other more than they think, because reincarnation's a lady dog, and evil is even worse. 

**Couples:** The main couple, of course, is Yami/Bakura, with hinted-at past Ryou/Shizuka, Seto/Isis, Jou/Mai, and Yugi/Anzu, and eventual Yugi/Ryou/Malik and possibly Ryuuji (Otogi)/Seto and more Jou/Mai. 

**Warnings:** shonen-ai, some angst, death at the beginning, mostly silly humor. 

Oh, yeah, and it's kinda essential you read WSJ's one-shot before attempting to read this, otherwise you'll get really cunfuzzled. Enjoy! 

========== 

Part 1: Separate 

Chapter 1: Yami no Bakura: Death 

"Bakura..." 

I jerked from a light doze, eyes wide. In front of me on the bed lay my Ryou, his brown eyes open and tearing up. Sniffling like a child, the hikari held out a trembling hand toward me. "Bakura, please hold me." 

I was too stunned to speak, but obediently moved to sit on the side of the bed and gathered my aging hikari into my arms. Ryou shuddered and leaned against me, his bony hands clutching at my shirt as I stared down at him in shock. 

Over the past 80 years, Ryou had grown older, as mortals are prone to do. He'd eventually gotten married, had several children of his own. Somehow, I stayed the same. I still look eighteen, even today when Ryou is old and looks as if a light wind could shatter him. I've always been with him, always. His wife knew about me from the beginning, and his children grew up accepting me for what I was, a leeching but somewhat caring spirit, and my existence has always stayed a family secret. When Ryou grew too old for me to pretend to be his brother, I pretended to be his son. Now, I play act as his grandson. 

However, almost seven years ago, now, both my Ryou and the pharaoh's Yugi began to... forget. Ryou and Yugi had stayed close all their lives, and their children are good friends too. The Motos know of my existence as well, and Ryou's kids know about Yami, who is also still youthful, like me. 

Ryou's children and Yugi's children got together and decided that Yami and I weren't enough to care for our hikaris, so they had Ryou and Yugi checked into a nursing home, where they've been slowly wasting away ever since. Yami and I moved into an apartment together soon after, and we come every day to visit Ryou and Yugi. Don't take that wrong, the pharaoh and I aren't together or any bullcrap like that. Our hikari's kids have lives of their own, and their spouses and children don't know about Yami and I, so it just seemed to make sense that he and I move in together and share expenses. 

It's hard. It's hard watching Yugi and Ryou slip away from us like this, and knowing there's nothing we can do... More often than not, these days, our hikaris don't even know who we are. 

"Don't leave me, Bakura..." Ryou whispered, snapping me out of my thoughts. His frail body was shaking like a leaf, and I was afraid to hold him any tighter lest he break. "Please, don't leave me." 

"I won't," I promise, soothing his hair back from his face. No longer the shining snow white it was in youth, now his hair is limp and gray, though as thick as ever. "I'm right here. I'll always be here." 

The Ring, which hung from its cord around my neck, began to shine brightly. Since Yugi and Ryou had come to this place, Yami and I took charge of our Items, though we were a little surprised we were able to do so. Ryou reached out to touch the Ring, and sighed, leaning against me. 

When he didn't breathe in again, I felt the tears begin to trickle down my cheeks. I hugged Ryou against me, sobbing quietly as I waited for the Ring to return me to my prison of eternal darkness. When I stayed stubbornly solid, I only began to cry harder. 

_Dammit! I don't _want_ to be here without Ryou! That was my one purpose for not going on to the afterlife years ago!_ I tried to will myself into my soulroom, but the way was blocked. For the first time in nearly 90 years, I was alone in my head, without even Ryou's comforting presence in the back of my mind. He was really gone. 

I don't know how long I cried, but at some point the nurses and doctors on the staff came in and managed to pry me away from Ryou's body. I wanted to stay with him, and I kicked and screamed and bit until I felt a familiar pair of arms wrap themselves around me. Then I just collapsed against Yami Yugi and sobbed my heart out, no longer caring what the stupid pharaoh did or didn't see. He just hugged me close, petting my hair and murmuring comforting words in Egyptian. Sometime around then Ryou's oldest son, Luke, found us. He joined our little huddled embrace, tears rolling down his face. 

Luke was something of a character. He and I had always been close, moreso than me and Ryou's other two sons or his daughter. I knew from the moment he was born that Luke was something special, and so he proved to be. He had Shadow Powers nearly as strong as Ryou's, and Ryou had often said that when he died he wanted Luke to have the Ring. Didn't look like that would be the case now, though, not if I was actually mortal. Luke was married to (of all people!) Seto and Isis Kaiba's daughter, Maia. Maia was the one exception to the "spouses don't know about the spirits" rule, since she'd grown up with us as well. 

"What am I going to do...?" I moaned, leaning a tear-streaked face against Luke's shoulder. "He's always been there... Why aren't I dead too?!" Luke could only shrug, and Yami stayed silent. He had no answers for me either. 

No one did. 

Eventually Luke and Yami managed to drag me from the hospice, and took me back to the apartment Yami and I shared. Maia joined us, and after what seemed to be an eternity my tears began to slow. I was laying in bed in my room, huddled under the covers like a scared child, trying to make sense of this new and harsh world. 

Why? Why hadn't I been banished back into the Ring, like I had after the deaths of each of my previous hosts? What was so different this time? 

_"I'm right here. I'll always be here."_

My own words came back to haunt me. Had I somehow done this to myself? It wasn't fair! Why couldn't I be dead too?! 

I curled up in a tighter ball, my eyes squeezed shut, trying to will myself into oblivion. Somehow I knew that trying to commit suicide would be futile. If the Ring had enough magic to sustain me and keep me young, it certainly had enough magic to prevent my willful death. I was half tempted to throw the damn thing out the window, but I honestly didn't want to know what would happen if I did. 

Sitting up in bed, my eyes felt painfully dry. What the hell? They'd been gushing fountains an hour ago. Shaking my head to clear it, I got to my feet and wandered over to sit down next to the window, staring out at the stars and the full moon. It was so beautiful out tonight... 

The moonlight spilled across me and I closed my eyes, leaning my head against the glass of the window. I was his mirror image. Pale skin, white hair, murky brown eyes, Ryou and I were just alike. But now he was gone, my beautiful moonlit hikari. I felt out of balance, off center somehow. Like I was flailing on the edge of a chasm and my only lifeline had just been cut. 

Without realizing it, I reached out mentally to touch Ryou's presence, only to find it wasn't there. I swallowed another sob, my eyes burning with unshed tears. A presence nudged the edge of my consciousness and I grabbed onto it, only to find that it wasn't the one I wanted. 

It was Yami. 

"Daijobou ka?" He asked quietly, leaning against the doorway of my bedroom. I knew without asking that Luke and Maia were asleep on the couch bed, and that Yami himself hadn't been able to sleep, probably because he sensed my distress. Over the years, he and I had formed a bond to each other. It was no where near as strong or developed as a yami-hikari bond, but it was still there. Usually we kept it blocked out, but apparently tonight I had let my defenses slip. 

"What the hell do you think?" I asked, not looking at him. My voice was rough from surpressed tears, and I could feel his sympathy as he crossed the room to kneel in front of me. Taking my chin in his hands, he tilted my face up to make me look at him. 

"Bakura, I know you're hurting, but we're friends, right? It's okay for you to open up to me. I..." I could feel his pain. "I know what it's like." 

"No you don't." I whispered, my fists clenched. "But you will." 

He flinched, and nodded. He knew as well as I did that Yugi couldn't last too much longer. It was only chance that Ryou had been the first of the two to die. 

I studied him as he let go of my chin and turned to face the window, looking out at the landscape I'd abandoned only moments before. The moonlight washed out his hair, turned his bangs a softer yellow than they normally were. His skin was milky and flawless, and it made me think of Ryou's. Before I could stop myself I reached out one trembling hand to trace the curve of his jaw. He closed his eyes and leaned into the touch, and I felt his breath beneath my fingers. Then his eyes opened again, and he turned to face me. I was almost startled to see amethyst eyes instead of chocolate ones, and I jerked my hand back involuntarily. 

For a moment we just looked at one another, and then Yami's eyes darted away from mine, and he nodded. He understood. I almost smiled, then. I should have guessed he'd understand. 

"I'll always be waiting." he said softly, looking out the window again. 

"No you won't." I answered, taking one of his hands in mine. "When you're alone, with no soulroom and no hikari to turn to, the darkness will consume you and you'll have to go, like me." 

His eyes seemed to flicker. "You mean I'll run away." 

I flinched, and squeezed his hand before letting go. "Yes. You'll run away." I stood up and moved toward the door. 

"Bakura." 

I stopped, but didn't turn. "Yes?" 

"You know as well as I do that we'll find each other again. It always seems to come back to the two of us, time and again. This isn't good bye." 

I smiled a little. "I never said it was." And then I walked out, leaving him behind bathed in moonlight. 

Yes, I ran away. I ran from death, I ran from grief, I ran from memory. And I think, a little bit, I was running from him, too. 

========== 

And there you have it, chapter one! ^^ Like I said, the first few chapters are really angsty, but then it gets into full-blown humor, so just hang tight. 


	2. Yami no Yugi: Grief

Here we are at chapter two, the first from Yami's POV. ^^ Humor me and leave nice reviews, okay? 

Disclaimer: I don't own YGO and the base idea for this fic belongs to Wingleader Sora Jade. 

========== 

Part 1: Separate 

Chapter 2: Yami no Yugi: Grief 

For once in his life, Bakura was right. 

Ryou had barely lain in the ground for a week when I found myself standing there again, watching Yugi be put to rest next to him. The two hikaris had been best friends for over 75 years, this was how they'd always wanted it. Shizuka lay on Ryou's other side, and Anzu on Yugi's. Nearby, I knew, Seto Kaiba and his wife Isis lay buried near Jounochi and Mai. Honda was somewhere in this graveyard too. Malik had requested to be buried in Egypt, so he wasn't here. Neither was Otogi, who'd been put to rest somewhere up north, I'm not sure where. So that was it. This is what it all came down to. Mokuba was the only one left, and even he was old and near death. 

And Bakura had run away. 

Now it was only me. 

Sure, Luke and Maia and Ryou's other children and Yugi's twins were here, but it wasn't the same. Standing wrapped in a coat while the preacher spoke about my aibou, I felt intensely alone. 

I shivered a little, hugging my coat closer. It was mid-November, and beginning to get colder. I'd always hated the cold. Yugi'd always teased me about it, but then again, he was always the first one to make me hot tea or cocoa, even before I'd asked... 

It was right then, standing in front of Yugi's grave, that I knew Bakura was right. I was going to run away, just as he had. Oh, I knew I could never escape the pain, and I didn't want to. Pain let me know that I was real, that my love for Yugi was still real. What I was running from were the memories. Maybe in a few years I could come back to Japan, but right now it hurt too much to be near the places my aibou had loved so deeply. 

It was Luke Bakura that gave me the way to do that. After the preacher had finished and people were beginning to migrate down the hill toward their cars, Luke and Maia took me aside. 

"Everything's packed," Maia told me, sympathy plain in her eyes. She was very pretty, having inherited Isis's coffee skin and dark hair, though hers was more curly than her mother's had ever been. "Luke and I have got most of your clothes and some of your books in suitcases in the back of the car." 

"You'll never have to worry," Luke added, pulling something out of his pocket and handing it to me. I was surprised to find two plastic cards, both emblazoned with matching numbers and the Kaiba Corp logo. Yugi had told me about credit cards, of course, but I'd never owned one before. "Those cards are set to tap directly into Kaiba Corporation's account. They're hack-proof and can't be overridden, and the technology is self-learning (which means as banking gets more sophisticated, so will the card), so even a thousand years from now you'll still be able to get money, as long as Kaiba Corp stays open." 

"It will," Maia added. "Since daddy and Uncle Mokuba bought out Industrial Illusions, we've had a monopoly on the gaming industry. I don't think we'll ever go out of business." 

"Those cards have a thousand dollar a month limit, though." Luke cautioned me. "Any more and people who don't know about this might notice. The other card's for Bakura, when you find him, and the passwords for both are set to 'sennen', although you can change it." 

I felt a rush of gratitude for these two who had already done so much, and to my embarrassment a rush of tears accompanied it. "Thank you," I said, sliding both cards into my pocket. "I don't know how I can ever repay you..." 

Maia smiled and cut me off. "There's no need. Just knowing how much you guys loved Uncle Yugi and Uncle Ryou is enough. And besides, it seems like you and Bakura are stuck. It's the least we could do after all you have already been through." She giggled a little and winked at me. "And besides, daddy would have kittens if he were alive and found out I'd done this." 

I smiled wanly as they began to lead me toward their car (I'd driven over with them, as Bakura had taken our car when he left). Maia was the youngest of Seto's three daughters, and always had been the rebel. 

"But," Luke spoke up, grinning. "Our families seem to have a notorious reputation for reincarnation. So take care of them if they ever show up again, okay?" 

I didn't have to ask what he meant as he held open the door to his car for me. 'They' obviously meant my aibou and Ryou, and anyone else who felt like getting reincarnated. I couldn't help but chuckle a little bit. Luke was right, we all had reputations of not staying dead. 

"So where to?" Maia asked as she climbed into the passenger's seat and Luke slid in behind the wheel. 

I blinked, pulling myself back from my thoughts. "The airport." I said, a small knot forming in my stomach. This was it, I was really going. I was actually going to leave Japan, and maybe not come back. 

And I was alone. 

Unconsciously I tightened one hand around the Puzzle's chain, gaining a little comfort from the cool metal. Turning a little as Luke began to pull away, I watched as two workmen began to fill in Yugi's grave. Every shovelful of dirt felt like it was being tossed onto me, that I was going to be buried and suffocate instead of Yugi. 

That was why I had to leave. 

Closing my eyes, I summoned up an image from a time long past, of a twenty-five year old Yugi on his wedding day. I'd never seen him happier. His youthful smile fixed in my mind, I turned to face forward again and opened my eyes. 

It was beginning to snow. 

"The airport," I repeated, my hold on the Puzzle's chain tightening. "I don't know where I'm going, but it's someplace far away." 

========== 

And there's chapter two. I think I write Bakura better than I do Yami, so I'm sorry if this chapter lacked. =( Stay tuned for next time! 


	3. Yami no Bakura: Journey

And back to Bakura again! Yami's loaded, and Bakura's got basically nothing, so Bakura's chapters are going to be rather more angsty, while Yami's will be more humorous, okay? 

Disclaimer: Not mine. The original idea is WSJ's. 

========== 

Part 1: Separation 

Chapter 3: Yami no Bakura: Journey 

Yami will be the first to admit that I'm impetuous. I do things without thinking. He does too, especially during duels, but I can't get him to admit that. But anyway, when I left the apartment in the dead of the night, I only had the presence of mind to stuff a few sets of clothes into a duffel bag, snatch the Horus pendant that Ryou gave me for his 50th wedding anniversary, and grab my small hoard of cash from under my mattress. 

I stopped to stare at the pendant for a moment, my heart sinking a little. It was Horus's falcon form, wings spread wide. Ryou said that I reminded him of Horus, because I was a vengeful protector, first of the villagers of Kruelna and then of him. Sometimes he even used to call me Ank-Horekte, Brother of Horus, when no one else was around. Sighing, I looped the pendant around my neck and tucked it under my shirt to rest next to the Ring. 

Throwing my bag over my shoulder I left the apartment, stalking downstairs. I threw my bag in the back of the car and began to drive. There was a burning desire within me to get to Egypt, no matter the cost. Rationally I knew my small amount of money would never be enough for a plane ticket (like I'd _ever_ trust a metal contraption that weighed more than the pyramids to fly anyway), so I pointed the car to the docks, hoping to book passage to China. I could go overland. I'd lived in the wilderness before, I could do it again. 

I had just enough yen to book steerage on a boat to China. I abandoned the car and went for it, figuring it might be my only chance. I spent the entire trip getting sea sick and wondering what the hell I was doing. By the time we hit the docks in China I knew the answer. 

I was running from my life, the one I'd spent with Ryou, and was subconsciously driving myself back toward my other life, the one I'd spent in Egypt. To forget one, remember the other, I guess. 

So I was in Beijing, didn't speak a word of Chinese, wanted to get to Egypt, had only a few clothes and next to no money. Easy, yes? Ugh, try again. Those months of wandering all over the damn continent were hell. I am _not_ going to rehash it, so don't even ask. I will, however, give you highlights and a few pointers. 

Don't ever eat mountain goat. Just... don't. Raw, it's tolerable. Cooked, it's disgusting. And while we're on the Tibetan note, don't stay with monks, even if they do lure you in with food. Most monks are sex-starved and will try to seduce anything that moves. Trust me, I've found out the hard way. However, if you do managed to be dragged off by a crazy monk, you must point over their shoulder and yell "Look, a yeti!" and hope like hell they turn around so you can run. 

When in China, _do not bathe in the hot springs_. I cannot stress this enough. I'm only lucky the Ring warned me of their magical properties before I got in, or I might have been stuck forever as a girl, or something. 

Don't go to Korea, either one of them, period. They eat dogs. And cats. And anything that moves. And apparently near-sighed old women think that certain white-haired teenagers look like hamburgers. Ugh, I've never run so fast in my life. Have you ever been stabbed by a fork? Be thankful, I _still_ have the scars. 

In India, don't go into a restaurant and order a hamburger. I did not do this, since I had no money. I tried to kill a cow that was just wandering around by itself (I eat raw stuff, remember? And who'd let a cow roam around freely, anyway?!). Apparently, beef is frowned upon in India. So unless you have a death wish, do not order a burger. And don't mention Hathor. Ra, I'm _still_ surprised I managed to survive that beating. Then again, aren't I always ranting about how the damn Ring won't let me die? Well, not dying is very painful, believe me. 

Let's see, what else... 

Oh, here's a good one. When you're stranded in the Alps (hey, I overshot, okay? I can't read maps!!) and begin to hallucinate, this is bad. When you begin to hallucinate about hikaris that have been dead for months, you're in trouble. When you start to hallucinate about certain _pharaohs_... Um, let's not go there, shall we? I'm lucky that hiker came along when he did, otherwise I'd probably still be up there. 

Then, of course, there's the ever popular Greece. Egypt and Greece were enemies. In my opinion, Cleopatra killed our empire. Then again, that may be just because I'm from "classical" Egyptian times, when we killed our enemies instead of seducing them and _then_ killing them. Can you tell I'm sex-starved? And before you ask, no I was NOT desperate enough to screw the monks. That just would have been creepy. 

But, yeah, Greece. They have olives. I do not suggest living for several weeks on a diet of nothing but olives. Ugh, it was not pretty, believe me. Take my advice and steal other food items whenever possible. 

So yeah, I got slightly sidetracked, took a couple wrong turns, and it was a year or two before I actually ended up in Egypt. Or I think it was Egypt, anyway. You can't see much though prison bars. 

...You're laughing at me, aren't you? I told Yami it was a stupid idea to write down what all we'd been through, because I knew someone would eventually read it, and now you are, and you're _laughing_ at me! I can tell! Quit it! 

Okay, okay, if I tell you why I was in an Egyptian prison, will you shut up? 

I'll take what I can get. Here's the story: 

It was _not_ my fault, first of all. They should have had a sign posted, or something. How was I supposed to know that swimming the Suez Canal was illegal? It wasn't even there in my day! (Oh god, I sounded like Ryou just then.) All I knew was that I had to get to Luxor before I went insane and attempted suicide by jumping in front of a charging camel. The Suez Canal was blocking my path, I am not Moses, there was no bridge, so I swam it. 

And there were these nice men in tan uniforms waiting on the other side. I saw the looks on their faces, my mind substituted their Egyptian Army uniforms for those of pharaoh's guards, and... you can probably guess what happened after that. Oops? 

So that's how I ended up in an Egyptian prison for five years of my miserable life (apparently Egypt has a really short murder sentence, since if it was any stiffer their population would die out). Pretty pathetic, huh? At least they served regular meals, and after the first two inmates got their teeth knocked out the guards figured out to keep me in a cell by myself. The only hell to pay was the fact that I had to keep the Ring and my Horus pendant hidden, or they would have taken them. That was simple enough, though, once I figured out the proper spell. 

So that covers, what, the first seven years after Ryou's death? Or was it eight? I can't really remember. A lot of my wanderings and prison time was spent in this weird mental limbo. I spent a lot of time, especially while I was in prison, just staring at the ceiling and thinking. Mostly about Ryou, sometimes about Yami. I missed them, both of them. 

Ryou, for obvious reasons, but it took me a long, long time to figure out why I missed Yami so much. He was the only one I could relate to, sure. He was my rival, and I missed arguing with him, of course. I missed randomly challenging him to duels and getting my ass kicked no matter what we chose to play. I missed that cocky little smirk of his and those damn gorgeous amethyst eyes... 

To be frankly honest, I spent half the time in prison mourning over Ryou and debating how to kill myself, a quarter of the time having fantasies about screwing the pharaoh, and the other quarter of the time banging my head against the wall and wondering what the hell I was thinking. 

And so passed a delightful five years. Does sarcasm convey well in print? I hope so. Anyway, one day a guard showed up, blinked for awhile about the fact that I didn't look any older, and then let me loose. 

Outside I stood blinking in the sunlight and realized I was in Luxor. Home. I had nothing but the clothes on my back. I was alone. I was depressed. But hell, I was Bakura. 

I managed to find the old temple of Kruelna still standing, cleared out the vagabonds inside, and declared it my home. I then began thieving again, though only for what I really needed (I had no desire to spend another five years in prison dreaming dreams that would never come to be). I also took to drinking, and promptly lost another ten years. 

========== 

Next chapter we find out what Yami's been doing for fifteen odd years. ^^ Chapter five will be angstier, but hopefully not too terribly so, and will be horribly fluffy as well. After that, we're into part 2. I think. If I don't decide to throw in some other random plotline first. ^_~ Til next time! 


	4. Yami no Yugi: Wish

Please be aware that the last two chapters, as well as this one, were written while I was sick with the flu, hacking my lungs out, and doped up on cough syrup... X.X 

Disclaimer: ...Do I look like a male Japanese millionaire? Oh wait, you can't see me... Well, I don't, so I must not be Kazuki Takahashi. 

========== 

Part 1: Separate 

Chapter 4: Yami no Yugi: Wish 

Ah... so you've heard Bakura's side of the story, and now you want to know what I was doing, eh? Well, contrary to what you might think, I did not immediately run for Egypt. That was Bakura's little fixation. In fact, I didn't want to go near Egypt _at all_. It held just as many memories as Japan did, for me, and I had no desire to recall them. 

So where was I while Bakura was languishing in an Egyptian prison? ...Would you believe America? 

No, seriously. After Yugi first became ill, I really had nothing to do with my time and ended up learning English and Arabic. When I left Japan I took a plane to New York City and dropped in on Yugi and Anzu's youngest daughter, who hadn't been able to get away from her studies at Julliard to come to the funeral. She and I had never been as close as her brother and sister had been with me, but she still welcomed me with open arms. She managed to get me hooked into the local dueling circuit, and for awhile I was reigning King of Games again. To the reporters, I had revived a "classic deck" used by "the great Yugi Moto himself" in the original Battle City (which is now held every two years in Domino). 

For eight years I dueled across America. I took a year-long tour in Europe. But people were beginning to notice that I didn't seem to age, and my claims of a hormonal disorder wouldn't hold forever. I finally decided it was time I dropped out of the public eye again. 

So I retired to a nice small apartment in southern France, where there was plenty of sun and reclusive houses and no awkward questions. Strangely enough, I took up painting. I know, I know, there's the whole Pegasus issue, but honestly I just didn't care anymore, and painting helped get my thoughts in order. 

A lot of the time I just painted the scenery. If you've never been to southern France, let me tell you that it is _gorgeous_. It's some of the most beautiful scenery in Europe, and the sunrises are to die for. 

I spent a good decade or so in my quiet little villa, painting and thinking. I'd come to terms with Yugi's death relatively quickly. I knew he was gone, and that hurt, but I also knew that I was still alive. For me, that was proof enough that Yugi wasn't truly gone, that someday he'd return, and my job as guardian would resume. Until then, I could only wait and enjoy what the gods gave me. 

I spent a lot of time thinking about Bakura, too. I hadn't forgotten the fact that we'd all but promised to meet again. But how long would it take? Bakura could be anywhere. And even if he was looking for me, I was holed up in the remotest part of France! 

I tried not to let it bother me. After all, he was a tomb robber. He could find me if he wanted to. 

Thoughts of Bakura always made my head spin, and upset the peace that I worked so hard to achieve. I tried not thinking about him, but that only made my thoughts linger. Remarkably, it took me very little time to realize what my feelings for the tomb robber were, but then I did my best to hide them away and paint over them. 

I missed him. I missed him awfully. I missed his sarcastic voice and his smirk. I missed the devilish look on his face when he was getting ready to pull a prank. I missed the way he always lost to me at everything, but never quit trying. I missed those dumb bat wings in his hair and his attitude when I tease him. I missed the cute look on his face when he's mad... 

Oh Ra, I did _not_ just think that. 

Nope. Definitely not. Bakura, if you're reading this, I am very sorry and I swear to Horus I'll never use the 'c' word again! Please don't hurt me! 

*cough* Yes, well, anyway... 

The point of that was, my life wasn't the same without a loud, obnoxious tomb robber around. It wasn't nearly the same, of course, without Yugi either, but there was something about Bakura that... I don't know. When I was with him, I felt safe, complete. When he wasn't there, I felt that same suffocating darkness I had the day Yugi had been buried. 

I tried to paint it away, but nothing worked. 

I had just about made up my mind to sell the villa and spend a few years trying to find Bakura, when there was a knock on my door. It was an early spring morning, and my easel was set up in the sun room where I was getting ready to paint the sun coming through the open window and falling on the tile floor. Wondering who the hell knew where I was, I got up and headed for the front door. And I must admit that my heart fluttered, hoping beyond hope that maybe Bakura had found me at last. 

But no. When I opened the door I was greeted with two familiar and welcome faces, and the mystery of how they'd found me was solved. Standing on my front steps were a man and a woman of about equal height, both with creamy coffee skin and lavender eyes. The man had dark hair, while the woman had sandy blond. The man carried the Sennen Rod in one hand, and the woman was wearing the Sennen Tauk. Both of them grinned when they saw me, and I smiled back, motioning for them to come inside. We took seats in the livingroom. She flopped backward onto a chair, while he sat down delicately on the edge of the sofa and leaned forward, his elbows resting on his knees. I couldn't seem to stop grinning. It had been so long since I saw a familiar face, and I hadn't seen these two since they were children. 

The woman's name was Gypsy, she was Malik's daughter, and the older of the two. The man's name was Ebon, Malik's son, and Gypsy's younger brother. None of us had ever met Malik's wife, as he'd met her while in Egypt, and she'd died soon after Ebon's birth. 

Gypsy giggled, smiling at me. "It's good to see you, Yami-san," she said cheerfully. "You're looking very well." 

I chuckled wryly. "I look the same as I always have, Gypsy." 

She shrugged. "Good point." 

"What brings you here?" I asked, setting back into my favorite arm chair. "Surely you could have tracked me down before now, if you'd wanted." 

Gypsy absently reached up to touch the Tauk. "Yes..." she said slowly. "But before now there was no need. We all thought it would be better to let you have your peace." 

I blinked, slightly alarmed. "And there is need now?" 

Ebon nodded, looking at me from under his bangs. He'd been the shier of the two, preferring to stay by his father while Gypsy ran all over the place. "Yes," he said in his quiet voice that reminded me (strangely) of Rashid's. "We came to tell you, because you're probably the only one who can do anything." 

I sighed a little. "Oh, it's one of those, is it? Who'm I dueling this time?" 

Despite the seriousness of the situation, both Ishtars cracked a smile. "No, not quite." Gypsy said. "It's not a saving the world gig." 

"It's not?" I asked, puzzled (no pun intended). "Then how am I the only one who can help?" 

Ebon smiled a little. "You're the only one he'll listen to." 

My blood ran cold. I knew who they were talking about immediately. "What happened to him?" 

Gypsy shook her head slightly. "We can't tell you. You'll have to find out for yourself." 

"Where?" I asked, almost pleading. "Please tell me where." My heart was pounding. If Bakura was in enough trouble that even _he_ couldn't get out of it... 

"Egypt," Gypsy said. 

"Luxor," Ebon clarified, standing and offering me a hand. "Come on, we'll give you a ride to the airport." 

========== 

Next chapter is also Yami POV. You'll see why. Reviews please? 


	5. Yami no Yugi: Oblivion

Here we go again... Reviews? 

Disclaimer: Um... No, I don't think so. ^^ No own. 

========== 

Part 1: Separation 

Chapter 5: Yami no Yugi: Oblivion 

I'd been in Luxor nearly two weeks, searching it from top to bottom, before I finally found him. Gypsy and Ebon had declined helping me search, retreating to their homes in Cairo, but offering help if I needed it. I didn't. I was sure I could find Bakura, wherever he was, on my own. 

And I did, eventually. 

In fact, I almost tripped over him. 

My search, as I mentioned, had been going on for weeks, and I was starting to get desperate. The only place I really hadn't looked at too closely had been the red light district. I figured that was the last place Bakura would be, because he'd cast so much scorn on the types of people that populated that sector for as long as I knew him. 

And yet, he wasn't anywhere else to be found, so the past few days I'd begun venturing into the red light district, usually only very soon after dark. The night I found him I was out a little later than usual, having followed a lead earlier in the evening that led me no where. I'd caught another little whiff of rumor, about an albino being the showpiece of a certain brothel that dealt in males. I really wasn't expecting too much. Bakura would have to be absolutely insane to let himself work for a brothel. That was probably the one station in life he admitted was beneath even himself. So, understandably, when I stepped into the brothel's common room my heart nearly stopped. 

It _was_ Bakura. 

In one corner of the common room, near the stairs leading upward toward the "business" places, a wrought iron cage was hanging from the ceiling. It was like those things you see in night clubs, that people will dance in, you know? Except this one was shorter and wider, made for holding, not dancing. My breath caught in my throat as I saw him. 

He was slumped against the bars of the cage, skinny as a rail and pale as milk. His hair was tangled and matted around his shoulders, and looked like it hadn't been properly washed or brushed since I'd left him eighteen years ago. He was bare chested and barefoot, his only clothing a tattered pair of linen pants that had seen better days. A pendant of some kind hung around his neck, and every now and then he'd bring up a hand to brush it, the only movement he made. The Ring was nowhere about him, and as I looked around I saw it nailed high up on the wall behind the bar, like some kind of sick trophy. Bakura's head was bowed, his shoulders slumped under the weight of a heavy iron collar that was around his neck. A chain connected the collar to the cage. Numerous scars crossed his chest and arms, ones much more fresh than the ones he wore from his past life. 

I felt rage boil up inside of me. How _dare_ they! How dare they cage him like some kind of animal! I was just ready to call up the Puzzle's power and banish everyone in this filthy hole to the Shadow Realm, but then Bakura moved. 

For a moment I thought he was reacting to my presence, but a moment later that suspicion was way-laid as Bakura's thin hands wrapped around the bars to the cage and he hauled himself to his knees, looking toward the bartender and letting out a wordless, whining, almost child-like cry. I took a step back into the shadows as I gazed, horrified, at his eyes. It was like he really had been reduced to a beast. Those eyes held no semblance of the man I'd once known, although this was undoubtedly him. 

"Oh Bakura..." I whispered, a wave of pity washing through me. "What did this to you...?" I had no doubts that it was a what, and not a who. No one, including me, could make Bakura do something he didn't want to do and expect to live. 

Still crying piteously, Bakura reached a hand through the bars, whining and straining toward the bartender, who just laughed at him. The serving boys snickered, and several men who seemed to be regulars started laughing at him too. One of them sauntered up to the cage and smacked Bakura's hand, causing him to recoil and whimper, cringing away from the man. Leering in a way that made my blood boil, the man snapped his fingers, and the bartender tossed him a ring of keys. Still smirking at Bakura, the man unlocked the cage and swung the door open, grabbing Bakura roughly by the upper arm as he used another key to unlock the collar. Bakura had gone stiff and fallen silent, and when the man yanked on his arm he slowly uncoiled himself and slid out of the cage, groaning slightly as cramped joints were forced to move. Snickering, the man tossed the keys back to the bartender, and led Bakura toward the stairs. 

It was all I could do not to charge after them as they disappeared from sight. As it was, I had to bite my lip hard to keep from summoning something to wipe all these villains out. How could they do that to Bakura? 

But another question, a more disturbing one, was weighing more heavily on my conscious. Why the hells had Bakura let himself be reduced to this? 

After several long minutes of taking deep breaths and calming my anger, I stepped out of the shadows and headed for the bar. Dressed as I was in leather and silver, I looked just like the kind of man who might frequent these sorts of establishments (although I honestly did not, I found them disgusting, and this one was no exception). I took a seat on one of the stools, and the bartender perked up at the prospect of new blood. "Evening, effendi. What may I get you?" 

I frowned a little, pursing my lips. "Date wine," I ordered absently, my eyes straying toward the now empty cage. He nodded, and a moment later the desired drink was placed in front of me. I took a sip, not really tasting it. "I'm from out of town," I said, choosing my words carefully. "I was told that this place has a very... interesting story, and I see that it does." 

The bartender snickered. "Ahh, you mean Horus?" He jerked his thumb toward the cage, and I nodded, my jaw tight. "Yeah, he draws quite a crowd. Good for business, he is." 

"What's his history?" I asked. 

The bartender eyed me, obviously suspicious. "Why do you want to know?" 

"Uhh..." I blinked, searching for an answer. "My, uh, sister gave birth to a white-haired child recently, and wishes to find the father." 

The bartender relaxed and snickered again. "You won't find him here. Horus is strictly a sub, and besides, this is a males-only establishment." 

"Ah." I said shortly, trying to keep my anger in check. It was getting much harder to do so as the seconds ticked by. Every moment I sat down here talking, Bakura and that man were upstairs... 

"Horus stumbled in off the streets some seven years ago, wearin' nothin' but the clothes on his back, the pendant that gave him his nickname, and that Ring on the wall behind me," the bartender continued, apparently deciding I could be trusted. My blood froze, just _thinking_ about Bakura being in a place like this for so long. "He's just a no-account drunk. Does whatever the customers want, so long as we keep him supplied with drink. When he first came he hinted there was some tragedy in his past, and alcohol was his escape. None of us pried, and over time it's faded. Haven't heard him speak or nothin' in over five years. He just cries like a damn cat when he figures it's time for another beer." 

"Where does he go at night?" I asked. "Does he have any family?" 

The bartender looked surprised, and then barked a short laugh. "Him? Family? Hon, if he had any family, they abandoned him a long time ago. He stays here at night. In fact, I can only 'member a couple times he's ever been out of the cage, except to go upstairs," he seemed to look at me with keener eyes, and gave me a knowing smirk. "I'm real sorry, but if you want him, I'll have to ask you to come back tomorrow. Qasim's up there with him now, and usually Horus is done for the night after Qasim's through." 

I shivered, bile rising in my throat. This was horrible. Maybe in the beginning Bakura had submitted to this willingly, but surely not anymore. The man I knew would never have stood to be dominated by anyone, especially not another man. Something else had to be going on here... 

Without warning, a scream pierced the air, undoubtedly coming from upstairs. I froze, my heart leaping into my throat as the regulars began to stamp and whistle. Another scream followed the first, and the Ring jangled slightly from it's place on the wall. This was all the proof I needed, and an instant later I was sprinting for the stairs, the Puzzle blazing with light. I followed the pain I could sense down the hall to the very last door on the left, which I kicked down easily. I strode through the door growling, the Puzzle shining brightly. 

Bakura was on his elbows and knees on the thick Persian carpet, his matted hair falling around his face and muffling his quiet sobs, his tattered pants thrown carelessly off to one side. The man the bartender called Qasim was sitting behind him, clearly startled off his mount by my untimely entrance. 

I was across the room in two strides, wrapping both hands around Qasim's neck and slamming him into the wall, my fierce scowl only an inch or two from his suddenly terrified face. "Go to hell," I snarled, the Puzzle already beginning to glow brighter. 

To my surprise, Qasim snickered, choking for breath as my hands squeezed his throat. "You think it's so easy to take another's prized possession?" 

"You think you have any right to dominate another living being against his will?" I answered levelly, eyes narrow. 

His own eyes narrowed in return. "I made sure long ago that if Horus was taken from me, no one else could ever have him." 

For an instant I felt chilled all over, but then my red-hot rage reached up and took a hold of me again. "Diiie!" I yelled, invoking the Shadow Realm to devour this pathetic human soul. As his body dissolved under my hands I banished the shadows with a wave of my hand and turned around. 

Bakura was right where he'd been before, though he was now laying on his side, as if he'd collapsed. He stared up at me with wide eyes, and for a moment I had the uncomfortable sensation that I was staring at Ryou, and not Bakura. Quickly I moved forward to kneel beside him, and reached out a hand to touch his shoulder. To my horror, he flinched away, and I quickly drew back. 

"Y-Yami?" he whispered, his voice broken from disuse. His eyes were still wide and dilated, as if he couldn't quite believe what he was seeing. Since the bartender downstairs had hinted that he was perpetually drunk, it made sense that he wasn't sure it was really me beside him. 

"Hai," I said softly, wanting to touch him, to comfort him in some way but not knowing whether that would do more harm or good. "Hai, it's me Bakura. We can leave now, and you'll never have to come back here again." 

He blinked slowly, and to my surprise he let out a muffled sob. "Gods Yami, I thought maybe you'd never come... That you'd forgotten me, abandoned me... Left me here..." 

Unable to resist, I let one of my hands rest lightly on the top of his head, my fingers tangling slightly in the matted hair. He flinched a little, but when I didn't yank on it or gods know what else, he relaxed slightly. "Shh, shh," I soothed. "I would never leave you in a hell hole like this. Ammit's belly is paradise compared to this place. Can you walk, Bakura? We have to get out of here before those downstairs overcome their fear and grow curious." 

As an answer Bakura grunted and started to rise, then gasped in pain and collapsed again. I bit my lip, pulling him into my arms and ignoring the fact that he struggled briefly against me. "It's okay..." I murmured into his hair. "It's okay, I'll never let anyone hurt you again." 

========== 

o.o That was... really angsty. I'm sorry. It wasn't supposed to turn out so dark. ._. Hopefully it'll lighten up sometime in the near future... 


	6. Yami no Yugi: Sorrow

-_- I swear, eventually it _will_ be humor. Eventually. 

Disclaimer: Nope, not mine. I wish. 

========== 

Part 1: Separate 

Chapter 6: Yami no Yugi: Sorrow 

Bakura was light, hardly weighing anything when I stood up with him in my arms, despite that he was a good head-and-a-half taller than me. I wondered if they'd fed him at all, or if he'd just existed on alcohol for the past seven years. He whimpered a little when I picked him up, but didn't struggle or protest like he had at first. One hand wrapped around the chain that held the Puzzle, although I suspected it was more for comfort than any thieving tendencies and let him. 

I carried him from the room and down the stairs, tapping into the Puzzle's power to make us glow with an ethereal, golden light. Men gasped and hurriedly backed away as I stepped into the common room, my glare scaring them more than any display of Shadow Powers could. 

"The Ring," I said softly, my voice cold. The bartender nearly fell over himself to get a stool and pull the Ring down from its nail. No one seemed willing to come near me with it, though, and finally it was just set on the end of the bar. I walked over to it, and whispered quietly to Bakura, as my hands were full carrying him at the moment. 

He blinked at me, and then turned his head slightly to see the Ring laying on the counter beside him. His eyes lit up like a kid at Christmas, and he eagerly reached out to snatch it, holding it against his chest like a favorite toy. Still glaring at everyone who dared get in my way, I made my way to the front door and kicked it open. 

Once I was outside, I slipped into a shadowed alley and let the glow around me fade. It was only then, as Bakura began to shiver in my arms, that I realized several things. I was alone in Luxor's underworld, with possibly Luxor's most famous male prostitute naked in my arms. Oh shit. 

Just as I was looking around for something to bang my head into, I heard a quiet chuckle from behind me. Turning, I saw Gypsy looking at me, obviously amused. The Tauk was giving off a low light, and I felt a rush or relief at seeing her there. "Gypsy! Am I ever glad to see you!" 

She smiled at me. "I figured. Ebon's bringing the car around now. We thought you might like a nice smooth get away ride to the airport." 

"And I suppose asking how you found us would be a stupid question?" 

She grinned and reached up to touch the Sennen Tauk. "Of course." Her face turned a little more serious and she took a step closer to me. "However, this isn't time for jokes. We called Rissa and she's bringing her plane to Luxor airport. You need to get out of Egypt as fast as possible. Even if your little display in there scared everyone who saw it into silence, it's not going to be long before other people begin to notice that little Horus is gone." 

I nodded mutely. Nerissa, Seto and Isis's oldest daughter and Maia's older sister, was the current CEO of Kaiba Corp and a competent pilot. "Thank you, Gypsy." I said quietly. 

She smiled as she drew a long cloak from around her shoulders and draped it over Bakura so he wouldn't freeze to death in the cool night air. "You can thank me when this is all over." she said. "While it's true that the Ring and Puzzle keep you and Bakura from dying, Bakura hasn't been in contact with the Ring for over seven years, and he seems to have hit upon the only way of killing himself that the Ring can't counter." 

"What?" I asked, my eyes widening. "You mean drinking?" 

She nodded, her lips pressed together tightly. I opened my mouth to ask another question, but just at that moment a small, dark colored car turned a corner and pulled to a stop near us. I followed her to it and nodded at Ebon as I slid in the back, Bakura laid out across the seats with his head on my lap. Gypsy got into the passenger seat, and a moment later we were on our way. 

It was a short ride to the airport, during which time Bakura fell asleep, still clutching the Ring for dear life. Rissa Kaiba was waiting for us when we arrived, next to the small jet she used for private travels. It occurred to me that the few clothes I'd brought were still back at my hotel, but at the moment I didn't care. I lifted Bakura into my arms again, whispering to him softly as he moaned and thrashed in his sleep. After a moment he settled down, one hand actually leaving the Ring to wrap around the Puzzle's chain again. 

I was halfway up the steps to the plane when I realized that Gypsy had pulled a bag out of the trunk of the car and was following me. I blinked, surprised. "Gypsy?" 

She gave me a calm look. "You'll need me." 

I felt a shiver go through me, the way it always did when Isis or Gypsy predicted the future. I nodded simply and took a seat in the jet, Bakura laid out across my lap again. This time he refused to let go of the Puzzle, and I had to let him sit up a little and lean against me. Gypsy sat down across from me as Rissa wordlessly took the pilot's seat. I heard two voices, and craned my neck to see Maia in the co-pilot's seat. She turned a little and waved to me, and then she and Rissa went back to running pre-flight checks. 

Bakura moaned softly and shifted, and I frowned. Raising a hand to brush his hair away from his face, I cursed quietly when my fingers touched his skin. "Gypsy, he's got a fever." 

Gypsy nodded, looking grim across the darkened cabin. She rummaged around in her bag for a moment, then tossed me a bottle of aspirin. "If he wakes up enough, give him one of those, though I doubt he'll wake up." 

I just stared at her. "Do you know what's wrong with him?" 

She just shook her head. 

It was a four-hour flight to Nice, France, the city closest to my secluded little house. In those four hours, Bakura only got worse. His fever sky-rocketed, and he alternated between fits of sweating and shivering. At one point Gypsy had to help me hold him down as he thrashed around, we were afraid he was going to hurt himself. The Ring began to glow soon after his fever set in, but whatever it was doing didn't seem to help any. By the time we landed in France, I was really worried. 

_"I made sure long ago that if Horus was taken from me, no one else could ever have him."_

Qasim's confident words came back to me as Gypsy rented a car and we began the hour drive back to my villa. I frowned, brushing Bakura's hair away from his sweaty face. What in the world could Qasim have done to him? I was startled out of my thoughts as Bakura gave a hoarse shout, making Gypsy swerve slightly. "Ryou!" 

"Shit!" Gypsy cursed, something I'd never heard her do. "What happened?" 

I could feel panic rising inside of me as Bakura continued to babble, most of it unintelligible, although Ryou's name could be heard quite often, along with mine and the names of Ryou's kids. "I think he's hallucinating." 

"Well that can't be good." Gypsy said dryly. 

"Gypsy, when we get to the house, please take good care of Bakura." I said, my mind made up. "I'm going back to Egypt. Maybe someone at the brothel knows what's wrong with him." 

"Most likely," she agreed. "But I doubt they'll just tell you after you ran away with their best attraction." 

I chuckled darkly. "That's what I have the Puzzle for." 

"Yami," I looked down in surprise to see that Bakura had taken my hand, and was staring at me with cloudy and pain-filled eyes. "Yami, where are you going?" 

"I'm going back to Egypt," I told him gently, stroking the back of his hand with my thumb. "I'm going to find a way to make you all better again." 

He fell silent, although his eyes didn't leave my face. 

"How do you feel?" I asked, although it was a stupid question. 

"Dizzy," he murmured. "Sick." He fell silent again, just staring at me. Finally he asked "Am I going to die?" 

"Not if I have anything to say about it!" I said vehemantly. 

He smiled a little. "Good." he said so softly that I had to strain to hear it. "Ryou would be mad if I died without telling you..." he trailed off, and his eyes drifted closed as he passed out again. 

I just sat there with my mouth open, blinking at him. Tell me what? What was Bakura so determined to tell me? I snapped my mouth closed as something stirred inside me, a feeling long surpressed. I looked down at him helplessly, wondering what these feelings within me meant. After a moment I shook my head and pushed them away. I'd have time for contemplation later, right now I had other things to think about. 

It wasn't until we reached the house that I realized I was still holding his hand. 

========== 

^_^ There you go! Any guesses as to what's wrong with Bakura? :p 


	7. Yami no Yugi: Addiction

._. Another angst chapter. *sigh* Glad you all are still with me. 

Beware very series one-ish Yami. Protective little bugger, ain't he? 

Disclaimer: Nope, no own it. :p Which is probably a good thing, considering what I'm doing to poor Bakura. 

========== 

Part 1: Separate 

Chapter 7: Yami no Yugi: Addiction 

I didn't want to leave Bakura, especially when he got worse and had another fit of hallucinations just as we reached the house. They were worse this time, he kept going on about Ryou and Yugi and Malik (the former two of whom had been dead for eighteen years, and Malik for nearly twenty-five) and Duel Monsters. Gypsy and I managed to get him inside and settled into my bed. Gypsy gave me her cell phone and swore to call me if anything changed or happened to him. 

And with that, I was back in the rented car headed for Nice to catch a public plane back to Egypt. It was nearly midnight Franco time when I got to the airport, but I managed to book myself a three a.m. flight to Luxor using both mine and Bakura's credit cards and the savings I'd pulled together over the years in a French bank. I caught a couple hours of sleep in a hard plastic airport chair, and a couple more on the plane. By the time I landed in Luxor and made my way back to the brothel, I was well rested and quite angry. I'd called Gypsy just after landing, and she'd said Bakura was about the same as before, although his bouts of hallucinations were longer now, and he kept complaining of aches and pains all over his body, as well as dizziness. 

I stormed into the brothel with Puzzle blazing. Most of the men sitting at tables and waiting for their turns upstairs tried to make themselves invisible after glimpsing the look on my face. The cage in the corner hung empty. 

It was the same bartender as the night before, and when he saw me he looked about ready to wet his pants. He squeaked and tried to run out the back door behind the bar, but I waved a hand and a wall of shadow sprang up in his path, blocking the escape. Slowly he turned around, eyes wide and frightened. 

I stopped in the middle of the room and cocked a finger at him. He whimpered a little, but slowly came out from behind the bar and toward me. From the warmth on my forehead, I could tell my third eye was blazing brightly. God, I hadn't been that mad in a long time. 

The bartender was a good deal taller than me, but the moment he was within my reach I grabbed him by the collar and yanked his face down so it was only inches from mine. He was sweating, and I could smell his fear, but I didn't care. This man had allowed pain to be inflicted on Bakura, probably caused Bakura pain himself, and for that I would show no mercy. 

"What's wrong with him?" I hissed, pitching my voice so that it was low and menacing, but at the same time the whole room could hear me. 

Oh lookie, he was going to play dumb. "Wh-who do you mean?" 

I tightened my grip on his collar, my third eye flaring and making him wince. "You know very well who I mean, bakamono. What have you done to make Horus so sick?" 

He actually _snickered_, then, and I snarled at him. "Are you _trying_ to infuriate me?!" Without noticing, I had invoked the Shadow Realm, and now it was swirling around us, twining around my legs in response to my anger. Dimly I could hear the frightened cries of the other men in the room, but they didn't matter. The smirk immediately vanished from the bartender's face, and he went white. 

"H-he's probably in withdrawal," the man stammered, his eyes wide. "P-please _affrit_, forgive me! I acted only under the orders of Qasim!" 

My eyes narrowed. Affrit was the Arabic word for 'demon', which suited me just fine. "Qasim? The man I banished to the Shadows last night?" 

The bartender shrugged as well as he could with me hanging on to his collar. "I-I do not know what happened to him. He was owner of this place." 

Ah, that explained his comment about Bakura being his possession, then. That just made it all the more sick that he used Bakura for his own twisted pleasure. I wouldn't doubt that the new scars Bakura carried were from this Qasim fellow, too. He seemed like just the type to be into sado-masochism. "And what orders did you follow concerning Horus?" I was trying hard to keep my voice steady, but it wasn't working so well. Both my voice and my hands were trembling in anger. 

The bartender whimpered, as if expecting that I wouldn't like what he had to say. "Every m-morning Qasim brought me what I was t-to put in his drink that day, and I did. When he first got here, h-he would not obey Qasim, and Qasim brought me what would make him placid. L-later on Horus could not perform without it, although he never knew what we put in his drinks. To him, it was just exceptionally good alcohol." 

My mind went numb. The bartender had said Bakura was probably in withdrawal... Oh gods. They'd drugged him. He was addicted to something, and he didn't even know it. No wonder he was so damn sick, if he'd been taking drugs for seven years... 

"Temee..." I hissed, my fists clenched so tight that the bartender was whimpering. And well he should be. The shadows were shrieking now, in response to my rage. They snapped and hissed at the other men, although they didn't touch them until I ordered them to. Shadows billowed around me like a cloak, my third eye and blazing Puzzle a piercing light in the darkness. With a snarl and a wave of my hand, the shadows lept. In a series of cut off screams, the vile men who dared frequent such a place as this were no more. The bartender whimpered, his eyes so wide I could see the whites of them all the way around. 

Hissing, I brought him closer so he was staring into all three of my eyes, two physical and one magical. "What is he addicted to?" I bit out each word, my teeth snapping like a rabid dog. 

He winced. "P-please honored affrit, it was not my fault! I was only following orders! I-" 

"Shut up and answer the damn question!" I snarled. 

When he did answer me, I sucked in my breath in horror. "No..." I stared at him, as if he was going to laugh and tell me April Fools. When he didn't, I snarled and put a hand to his forehead, intending to send him to oblivion. Then I paused and thought better of it. Why not put him through all the pain he and his comrades had inflicted on Bakura? 

I snapped my fingers, summoning the Dark Magician to oversee. I knew he would make sure the job was done properly. Then I threw the barman to the shadows. I listened to him scream for awhile, stewing in my own anger and horror. It occurred to me for the first time that Bakura might actually die from withdrawal. I couldn't let that happen, no matter what the cost! I had to get back there, find a way to help him heal. 

Turning, I nodded to the Magician and let myself fade back into the now empty common room of the brothel. My jaw tight, I walked toward the front door, muttering to myself. There had to be a way to get Bakura through this. I couldn't lose him, not now. Striding down the streets, loose shadows still running at my heels, I pulled out Gypsy's cell phone and dialed my own number. Gypsy answered on the second ring, sounding slightly frantic. 

"Hello?!" 

I froze in the middle of the street, scared by something in the tone of her voice. "What is it?" I snapped, the hand not holding the cell phone tightening into a fist. 

"He's getting worse," she said, sounding worried. "He's started retching, and I can't get him to stop. And that's _with_ the high fever, fits of chills, and delusions." 

"He's in withdrawal." I said grimly. "Call Ebon and have him meet me at the brothel. I assume he's still in town? He needs to get me in touch with the Egyptian black market. If Bakura's going to survive, we're going to need to get our hands on a lot of this stuff and ween him off it." 

Gypsy gasped, and I could picture her horrified expression. "Oh Allah... What is he on?" 

I scowled, my voice dripping with distaste as I spoke the one word that changed all our lives. 

"Opium." 

========== 

*winces* Please don't hurt me... 


	8. Yami no Bakura: Withdrawal

Ych... This thing is now officially drama/romance. ._. *is still holding firm to her "it WILL eventually be humor" hope/theory/delusion* 

Disclaimer: Does Bakura actually have an unknown drug addiction? Is he secretly pining for Yami? Is Malik dressed only in fishnet stockings? Apparently not, so I must not own Yugioh. *snaps fingers* 

========== 

Part 1: Separate 

Chapter 8: Yami no Bakura: Withdrawal 

It hurts... Oh Ra, it hurts... Everything's dark, and spinning... Am I in the Shadow Realm again? Please no... No... 

Oh god, please. Just let me die. This is too much... 

Where's Yami? He swore he'd never let anyone hurt me again. Did he go back on his word? But... Yami wouldn't do that, not to me... 

Oh hell, who'm I kidding. Of course he would. I'm a tomb robber, there's no way he'd actually want to stay with someone like me. He's pharaoh, he could have anyone he wants. He wouldn't bother with a thief like me... 

Please... Osiris, let me die... There's no reason to live! Yami doesn't care, and he's all I ever think of. He doesn't love me, so nothing matters. Please, let me die... Just let me fall... 

"He's getting worse." 

Who's there? I don't remember Qasim employing any women. Serenity? Is that you? Where's Ryou? Ryou, I have so much to tell you... 

"He keeps calling out to you and Uncle Ryou, I think he's so delirious he doesn't even remember Ryou's dead." 

Ryou's dead? My hikari? No, no, no... That can't be true! You lie, whoever you are! Ryou would never leave me! Ryou's always been there. Always... 

"Hurry back quickly, Yami." 

Yami? You lie again! Yami's gone... He'll never come for me, I'm just a worthless whore of a tomb thief. Broken and worthless, a clip-winged Horus. That's all. I could never be of any worth to a pharaoh. Especially not one as beautiful as Yami... 

_"Bakura..."_

Ryou? Ryou! Oh Ryou please, it hurts so much. Please, just make it go away... 

_"It's not your time yet, yami no niisan. You have to live, so I can see you again."_

But there's no point, hikari... Yami couldn't care less about what happens to me, so there's no point in going on! 

_"You're wrong. Yugi-kun and I are coming back someday. Don't you want to see me again, yami?"_

Of course I do, Ryou! But... 

_"You have other reasons to go on too. Aren't you listening?"_

Listening to what? All I hear is you, Ryou... Ryou? Where'd you go? No, please come back! It hurts... I don't want to be alone... Please Ryou... Someone... 

"You're not alone, Bakura. I'm right here." 

A cool hand rests on my forehead. Oh that feels so good! Please, don't go. Who are you? 

"It's me, Bakura, it's Yami." 

"He's been babbling on about you leaving him. For a moment there, he actually seemed to think he was talking to Ryou." 

"That isn't good... Ebon, is the first dose ready yet?" 

"Almost," 

What are they talking about? Ebon? Who's that? Did Qasim hire someone new without me noticing? Hey, where are you going? Don't let me go, I'm falling... No! Come back, please! I don't want to be alone! 

"I'm right here Bakura, I'm right here... Shh..." 

Pharaoh... Don't leave, please... 

"He sounds so pathetic... I can't believe they'd do this to him!" 

"Is he going to be okay?" 

"We can only hope. Can you sit up, Bakura? Here, I'll help you. Drink this..." 

Arms around me. Pulling me back from the darkness, keeping me from falling. Warm and safe... Can't we just stay like this? Please? Please don't leave me alone again... 

A chuckle. "I won't, my thief. Not ever. I missed you too much when we were apart to ever leave you again." 

A kiss, then. Cool lips against my sweaty forehead. That feels so nice... I wonder if he's really there, or if this is just another dream... I've dreamed so much, tied up in my cage... Dreamed of Yami coming to rescue me, but it never happened. Oh please... Don't let this one be a dream too... Please... I want my pharaoh... 

Slowly, my vision comes back into focus, and I find myself staring into amethyst eyes that are brimming with tears. I blink, surprised, as one falls and splashes against my cheek. "Yami..." 

"Welcome back, my thief," his voice is thick with surpressed emotion as he cradles me against him, his arms feeling as though they belong around me. "It's going to be a long journey, but the first step is taken." 

I blink again, still bewildered. My head still hurts, though not nearly as much as before. Instinctively I reach a trembling hand to curl it around the Puzzle's chain. "A-and you won't leave me?" I ask, my voice quavering with hope. I wrinkle my nose at the sickening tone of my own voice, but Yami just laughs and hugs me, more tears welling up in his eyes. I recognize them now for tears of joy. 

"No Bakura, I won't leave you. Not ever." 

And I believed him. 

========== 

Awww! Fluff! ^_^ Reviews please! 


End file.
